Six things we have learnt from Manchester United’s US Tour

Juan Mata looks at home

Juan mata in action against Liverpool

When you buy a natural number 10 and play him on the wings, he can’t perform his best and that’s what happened under Moyes last season. The Spaniard never looked comfortable playing a wider position following his club record £37.1 million move from Chelsea, and there were even questions raised about his future at Old Trafford when Van Gaal came in. But Mata has benefited the most from the manager’s shift to three at the back in order to get two forwards on the pitch and willingness to mold the system around the players he likes, and the Spaniard appears much happier in this new 3-4-1-2 system.

He might be wearing the number 8 jersey, but Mata is Manchester United’s first choice number 10 and his deployment in that role behind two strikers in Van Gaal’s new formation shows he has the manager’s faith in him.

Ashley Young has future at United

Young celebrating one of his two goals against Real Madrid

When Van Gaal took over at Manchester United earlier this summer, the future looked bleak for Young. There appeared to be no place for the 29-year-old in Van Gaal’s favoured 3-4-1-2 (3-5-2) formation and, after a poor campaign under Moyes last season, the former Aston Villa winger looked almost certain to be offloaded. Five games later, however, and Young looks to have saved his United career by reinventing himself as a wing-back in the mold of Dirk Kuyt, who caught the eye at the World Cup with his industrious performances for the Netherlands.

Four goals and a series of penetrating crosses and dribbles provided a reminder of Young’s attacking qualities, but his defensive limitations were exposed by Raheem Sterling in the final which led to the penalty and Steven Gerrard converting it. An isolated lapse maybe, but is Young really cut out to play that role week in and week out in the Premier League? Only time will tell, but for now he looks certain to stay and has future at United.

United need at least two more signings.

A fan during the Manchester United vs LA Galaxy match

Despite winning the tournament, Van Gaal knows he needs to strengthen if United are going to compete with the big guns of England for the the title. They need atleast one central defender and one combative midfielder, and with just 21 days to go until the close of the transfer window, it needs to be done quickly. The lack of depth at the back was exposed against Real Madrid when Michael Keane started in place of the injured Chris Smalling. The 21-year-old is one for the future, but struggled against the pace and trickery of Gareth Bale, and a more experienced defender is needed following the departures of Nemanja Vidic, Rio Ferdinand and Patrice Evra. In midfield, Michael Carrick’s injury has increased the need for Van Gaal to bring in reinforcements. Of the current options, Ander Herrera has been impressive in the pre-season but is still adjusting to life in England, Tom Cleverley hasn’t raised any eyebrows whenever he has played while Darren Fletcher struggled badly in the final against Liverpool.